Ubisoft has announced an environmental initiative to eliminate paper game manuals, replacing them with an in-game digital manual for all titles on PlayStation®3 (PS3) system and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. The program, the first initiative of its kind in the video game industry, launches worldwide with Shaun White Skateboarding this holiday 2010. As the right thing to do, I like this move. As a gamer I am still not sure, I mean I understand the arguments it will allow manuals to be more robust, but I don’t know that I want to pause my game and then browse to a screen to get the info I am looking for.

Ubisoft”s digital game manuals will provide multiple benefits for the player and the environment. Including the game manual directly in the game will offer the player easier and more intuitive access to game information, as well as allow Ubisoft to provide gamers with a more robust manual. Ubisoft internal data shows that producing one ton of paper used in Ubisoft’s game manuals consumes an average of two tons of wood from 13 trees, with a net energy of 28 million BTU’s (equivalent to average heating and energy for one home/year), greenhouse gases equivalent of over 6,000 lbs of CO2, and wastewater of almost 15,000 gallons.

It’s pretty cool that Ubisoft is making a conscious effort to go green with its new video game packaging, commented Olympic Gold Medalist Shaun White. I’m excited for my new skateboarding game to come out and stoked that it will be the very first Ubisoft game to be part of their green packaging initiatives.

In addition to Ubisoft’s efforts to decrease paper usage in its game packaging, Ubisoft has partnered with Technimark, Inc. to release the entertainment industry’s most environmentally-responsible DVD case for all of its future PC titles in North America. The 100 percent-recycled polypropylene ecoTech DVD case will make its debut with Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction PC video game on April 27, 2010. Ubisoft has featured digital game manuals in its PC titles distributed in North America since March 2010.

Ubisoft is often recognized for making great games, but it’s a special privilege to be the industry leader at saving trees, said Laurent Detoc, president of Ubisoft North America. Eco-friendly initiatives are important to the global community and introducing in-game digital manuals on Xbox 360 and PS3 is just the latest example of Ubisoft’s ongoing commitment to being a more environmentally conscious company. Well there you have it, what do you think of Ubisoft’s new eco friendly movement and the idea of no more paper manuals? Is this the start of a trend that other publishers will follow?

I am the Co-Ceo of DLT Digital Media. We are a company that is focused on developing new and innovative web properties in addition to developing WordPress based web sites for others. But before I was all that, I was a gamer.